CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Illinois temperatures in January showed some very
large swings in which the highs and lows tended to cancel each other out, with
a monthly temperature of 26.7 degrees, or just 0.3 degrees above average,
according to Illinois State Climatologist Jim Angel, Illinois State Water
Survey, University of Illinois.

Statewide Daily Temperature Departure,January 2016, in Illinois

The first nine days of the month were above average, followed by four days below
average, then three days above average. The second half of January started out
much below average, but steadily warmed, and by the month’s end the temperature
was 20 degrees above average.

“While the magnitude of the swings was impressive, the pattern of warm and cold
stretches is typical of winter in Illinois and represents the passage of warm
and cold fronts across the region,” Angel said. “Because it may take a day or
more for a system to pass through Illinois, the dates and size of the
temperature departures at a particular station may not correspond to the
statewide numbers, especially in far southern Illinois.”

The
statewide average precipitation (rain plus water content of snow) was 0.85
inches, or 1.22 inches below average. Precipitation was uniformly light across
Illinois, just under 1 inch in most places.

The
January snowfall ranged from 2 to 5 inches in most locations. Western Illinois
saw 5 to 7.5 inches. However, most of Illinois received below-average snowfall.

The Illinois State Water Survey
at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, a division of the Prairie
Research Institute, is the primary agency in Illinois concerned with water and
atmospheric resources.